Rowing BC is proud to share this new Strategic Plan. It reflects the voices, experiences, and aspirations shared by athletes, coaches, umpires, administrators, and volunteers from across BC.

This plan represents more than organizational goals, it is a shared commitment to supporting the people who make rowing possible, prioritizing safety, embracing reconciliation, advancing performance at every level, and ensuring stewardship and sustainability of the sport for future generations.

The next chapter of rowing in British Columbia will be written through our collective effort, and Rowing BC is proud to lead alongside our community in bringing this vision to life.

Process

When we began developing this new Strategic Plan, one of our main priorities was to ensure that it truly reflected the entire rowing community. We wanted the process to be thoughtful, inclusive, and grounded in real input from across the province.

To help guide that process, we engaged an external consultant, who brought an objective lens and experience in strategic planning within the sport sector. This helped us stay evidence-based and focused throughout.

We started internally, with a staff session, where we took a close look at our day-to-day operations, identifying what’s working well, where we see challenges, and where new opportunities might lie.

Next, our Board of Directors held a planning session to align on big-picture priorities, thinking about where Rowing BC should be heading over the next several years.

We then hosted targeted small group engagement sessions. These discussions gave us valuable, candid insight into the real experiences of people across BC.

To make sure everyone had a voice, we also ran a stakeholder survey, open to the entire rowing community. The significant response rate helped validate many of the themes we were hearing in those smaller conversations.

After that, the Board came together again to review all of the feedback and refine the key priorities emerging from it.

Finally, the Steering Committee worked closely to bring everything together, synthesizing all the input into a clear, cohesive, and actionable strategic plan.

This plan is not just Rowing BC’s, it’s our plan, shaped by the collective input and insight of our entire rowing community.

Vision

When we began developing our new strategic plan, one of the first questions we asked was: What do we want the future of rowing in BC to look like?

Through our consultations with staff, board, clubs, and members, a few consistent themes emerged. People spoke about wanting a vibrant, healthy, and sustainable rowing community. They wanted a sport where every participant, whether recreational or high performance, feels connected and supported.

Our previous vision already spoke to growth and excellence, and we wanted to carry that forward but with a stronger focus on connection and inspiration.

That’s how we arrived at “Inspiring a thriving and connected rowing community.”  

It’s short, memorable, and captures both the energy and unity we heard across the province. 

It’s not just about numbers or medals,  it’s about belonging, progress, and a shared sense of purpose in rowing across BC.

Mission

After establishing our vision, the next step was to define how we’ll get there and that’s where the mission comes in.

Throughout our engagement sessions, we heard clearly that people value connection, support, and growth. Clubs wanted stronger relationships with one another, coaches and officials asked for more development opportunities, and athletes wanted to see the sport continue to rise at every level.

This mission reflects all of that. It speaks to three key actions:

• Connecting the rowing community — ensuring that no one feels isolated, and that collaboration drives everything we do.
  
• Supporting its development — through programs, education, and resources that help everyone thrive.
  
• Elevating the sport — raising the overall standard of rowing in BC, from grassroots participation to national and international success.
  

It’s a mission built from the voices of our community and rooted in the idea that by working together, we can make rowing stronger, more inclusive, and more sustainable for the future.

Values

As we moved through this strategic planning process, one of the things we felt most strongly about was the importance of continuity, recognizing and maintaining the values that have guided Rowing BC for many years, while also ensuring they reflect where our organization and community are today.

We didn’t want to start from scratch. Instead, we wanted to build on the foundation that’s already shaped how we work, how we lead, and how we connect with our members.

You’ll see that the four values: Respect, Integrity, Excellence and Collaboration, carry forward the spirit of our previous plan, but they’ve been refreshed and refined to better reflect the Rowing BC of today.

• Respect remains central. It’s about honouring every individual’s contribution whether that’s an athlete, coach, umpire, volunteer, or administrator and continuing to foster a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment across all levels of rowing.
• Integrity has always been a cornerstone of how we operate. We wanted to reaffirm our commitment to honesty, fairness, transparency, and accountability because that’s what builds trust within our community.
• Excellence reflects our drive to continually improve, innovate, and uphold high standards both on and off the water. It’s not just about performance, it’s about striving to be better in everything we do.
• Collaboration speaks to how we’ve evolved as an organization. More than ever, we’re focused on working openly, sharing knowledge, learning from one another, and recognizing the diversity of needs and experiences across our community.
  

These values together form the foundation for how we’ll approach the next five years. How we’ll make decisions, how we’ll communicate, and how we’ll move forward as one connected and thriving rowing community.

Pillars

The plan is built around three pillars. 

‘Engage’ focuses on participation and community. 

‘Elevate’ ensures our athletes, coaches, and programs continue to improve. 

‘Endure’ secures rowing’s long-term sustainability, partnerships, and visibility. 

These highlights illustrate the focus areas within each pillar. Each strategy is designed to strengthen our programs, grow participation, and ensure the long-term health of rowing in BC.

Looking Ahead

As we wrap up, this new Strategic Plan represents more than just a document. It’s a shared vision for the next chapter of rowing in British Columbia.

Through the development process, one thing became clear: our community is passionate, resilient, and deeply connected by a love of the sport. The feedback we heard from athletes, coaches, umpires, volunteers, club leaders, and partners, shaped this plan at every step.

Over the coming years, Rowing BC will work closely with clubs, committees, and stakeholders to bring this plan to life, track progress, and report back on outcomes.

This is truly a plan built by the community, for the community.

And with your continued collaboration and support, we can look forward to a future where rowing in BC is stronger, more connected, and more inspiring than ever before.